France: Top court blocks social media ban for children
Denying access to platforms such as Facebook, TikTok and YouTube for under-15s would infringe upon freedom of expression, the Constitutional Council has said.
The Constitutional Council of France has overturned a ban on social media for children under 15, deeming it a violation of freedom of expression. President Emmanuel Macron's second-term policy, which required individuals to prove their age before accessing these platforms, was criticized for lacking clear rules on age verification and limit application.
The ban would have also prohibited mobile phone usage in high schools and mandated age-verification measures from social media companies. Macron has tasked Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu with revising the bill before the 2027 presidential election. This decision contrasts with Australia, which was the first country to ban social media for under-16s in 2025, and the European Commission's pledge to pursue an EU-wide ban on under-13s' access to social media.
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